Best Season?
Was Route 66 good from the start, or do you think that it took a while to click? What is the best and worst season?
shareRoute 66 was great pretty much right from the start. The best season is season 1; second best is season 2. The worst seasons are season 4 and the second half of season 3.
That's the short answer. The long answer follows:
Route 66 did not get significantly better after the greatness of season 1. The show got worse after the caracter of Linc Case appeared a little after the middle of season 3.
My 'shoot from the hit' answer, without looking at my rankings, is that the best season is season 1; the first half of season 3, as well as season 2 in general, are also very good. The worst season is season 4; roughly the last half of season 3 is just as bad, maybe worse.
I've spent considerable time ranking the 113 (out of 114) episodes that I've seen multiple times (there are 116 episodes but 2 are two-parters and one episode I don't think I've ever seen. RTV doesn't seem to ever show the episode "The Stone Guest" - Season 4, Episode 7, so I have not ranked that episode).
I've gotten to the point that I rarely feel the need to change my rankings after rewatching an episode- the rankings have been pretty stable for several months now.
Now let's see if my rankings are consistant with my general impression of the seasons.
The number of episodes in each season in my top 30 are:
season 1 - 11 episodes
season 2 - 9
season 3 - 7
season 4 - 3
My three favorite episodes are in season 1:
1-30 "Incident on a Bridge"
1-16 and 17 "Fly Away Home" (2 parts)
1-03 "The Swan Bed"
Of my 20 least favorite episodes, all but one are in seasons 3 or 4.
Only one of the 7 season 3 episodes in my top 30 has Linc Case in them, specifically " The Cruelest Sea of All," in which Linc is kind of a third wheel (Elissa falls in love with Tod, not Linc, thank goodness). There are some episodes with Linc in them that I like but in no case do I like an episode because of Linc; it's always in spite of Linc. I make no secret of the fact that I don't like Linc Case. I don't like the way the character was written and I'm no fan of the actor that plays him. I've said it before and I haven't changed my mind- Route 66 was better when Tod was alone than it was after Linc joined him.
My rankings are consistant with the idea that Route 66 got worse each season, although it should be noted that season 3 is a tale of two seasons; I like the first half (before Linc joined the show) much better than the second half (aargh!).
Thanks for your response. The show was a little before my time, and as a kid in the 70s I never saw it because it wasn't in syndication as so many other 60s shows were. For some reason I never got around to checking out this series, though I often heard about it. I was going to buy a season on DVD... I saw the third season at a bargain price (I understand that George Maharis left the show, and noticed that, mid-season, Tod was going it alone). Many series start awkwardly, with the characters not fleshed out- that's why I asked. If you say that season 1 is good right out of the blocks, I'll go for that and proceed from there.
shareMany shows do start out poorly for a season or so and then get better in later seasons. Route 66 is not one of those shows. If you can't find anything you like in season 1, then I doubt you'll find much to like in later seasons.
The very first episode, "Black November" is not my favorite (rarely is a pilot my favorite) but it's definately a must-see (and a good Halloween episode). Route 66 hits its stride very quickly after the pilot. Season 1 is the best.
I too thank you for your information, lynxrufus. Two months ago I had never seen more than a handful of ROUTE 66 episodes ever, but after DVR-ing them lately I've become hooked. I joined Season 2 in progress and have loved so many that I just bought the DVD box of the entire season.
MeTV is getting close to the point in Season 3 when Buz leaves the series. I think I'll be sorry by that time.
Most great films deserve a more appreciative audience than they get.